Something for the weekend: United are out for revenge on the laughing Black Cats and Messi squares off against Falcao

Every Friday, Michael Walker will pick out 10 things to look forward to over the footballing weekend.

This week, he explains why Manchester United want revenge over Sunderland for that day in May when City won the title and looks ahead to first v second in La Liga on Sunday night - it's Barcelona v Atletico Madrid and Lionel Messi v Radamel Falcao.

1.The weekend begins tonight, in Bavaria. One of the great club rivalries continues when Bayern Munich host Borussia Monchengladbach. Bayern will be expected to extend their lead at the top of the Bundesliga.

It was not always this way. In the nine seasons between 1968-69 and 1976-77, the Bundesliga was won five times by Monchengladbach and four times by Bayern, who also won three consecutive European Cups in that period. Gerd Muller has had renewed interest due to Lionel Messi, so this is maybe an opportunity to review footage of Monchengladbach’s Gunter Netzer while pretending to be at work.

Rampant: Bayern Munich are 11 points clear at the top of the Bundesliga

2. Quiz question: get a pen and paper and write down Clive Allen’s club career path. No wikipedia allowed.

Allen signed for 10 clubs in his 17-year career – QPR twice. To make it easier, name the clubs Allen signed for after he left Tottenham Hotspur in 1989. There are six in total.

* Answers at bottom

3.There is already a degree of anticipation about Luis Suarez’s return to Liverpool’s Premier League colours tomorrow against Aston Villa at Anfield, as if Suarez had been out for some extended period. It was one match, which Liverpool won at West Ham.

In the corresponding Villa fixture last season Suarez scored the equaliser in a 1-1 draw. It came late and only after manager Kenny Dalglish had introduced attacking substitutes, Craig Bellamy and Andy Carroll. Dalglish, Bellamy, Carroll: feels like a different era. It was April.

Liverpool won 3-2 at West Ham on Sunday without their leading scorer Suarez

4.St. James’ Park stages a hell of a game tomorrow. Exeter City host Plymouth Argyle in a Devon derby.

Exeter are seventh in League Two and 37 year-old striker Jamie Cureton has scored 15 goals already this season. Plymouth are 20th, just five points off bottom club Barnet and last Saturday’s win over York was their first in ten matches. It’s a noon kick-off.

5. At the other St. James’ Park, another early kick-off. Manchester City return to the scene of their enormous victory in May on Tyneside. In their penultimate match of the season, their last away-day, Yaya Toure scored twice in the last 20 minutes to ground the high-flying Magpies.

City won their last six Premier League games last season. After last Sunday, and the Tuesday preceding it in Dortmund, City need to go on a comparable run again. They need Yaya motoring.

6. The memories of the final day of last season are not just strong at City, it’s the same at United. Sir Alex Ferguson, his players and the United fanbase have not forgotten the Sunderland fans’ laughing reaction when news came through of Sergio Aguero’s injury-time title-winner. You should have seen Paddy Crerand that day. Ferguson’s teamtalk will presumably ‘touch’ upon this.

Sunderland have not won at Old Trafford since May 1968 when Colin Suggett and George Mulhall scored in a 2-1 win. George Best scored a nonchalant 20-yard volley for United. God bless you, George.

Leaders: United won an explosive Manchester derby on Sunday to move six points clear at the top of the Premier League

7. Bradford City are the team of the week after knocking Arsenal out of the League Cup on penalties on Tuesday night. Tomorrow Bradford are at Southend United, who received rather fewer column inches even though they also knocked out superior opposition in a Cup on penalties, also on Tuesday night. Southend beat League One Bury at Roots Hall in the FA Cup.

And Southend’s prize in the Third Round? They are at home to the winners of next Tuesday’s replay between Brentford and – Bradford City (re-instated).

8. There are eight clubs in the Championship beginning with the letter ‘B’. Seven of them are home tomorrow. Only Blackburn are away. At Blackpool. Or fracking Blackpool as Henning Berg may know it at around five o’clock. (Blackburn: one win in eight).

Struggling: Blackburn have won only one of their eight games under Henning Berg

9. It’s attempt No 17 for QPR in the league, a west London derby v Fulham. There is a bad omen in that this is a reminder that Fulham beat QPR 6-0 at Craven Cottage last season, and 1-0 at Loftus Road.

The good news is that Fulham’s scorers in those two matches were: Andy Johnson (now at QPR) Danny Murphy, (now at Blackburn) Clint Dempsey (now at Spurs) Bobby Zamora (now at QPR) and Pavel Pogrebnyak (now at Reading).

10.The weekend finishes on Sunday night with a potential belter from Spain. It’s Barcelona v Atletico Madrid, it’s first v second in La Liga, it’s Messi v Falcao. Messi, we sort of know about. At 26, we know less about Radamel Falcao but an unmissable fact is that he has played 15 times for Atletico Madrid this season and scored 19 goals. In his last game Falcao scored 5 in the 6-0 win over Deportivo La Coruna.

It's raining goals! Messi and Falcao have both been scoring at will this season